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Published: Friday, 28 January 2022 16:27

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Cash to keep:

Usually you do not want to leave much cash in your brokerage account, as they pay you close to 0% in interest rate. However, it's prudent to keep some cash just so that you don't have to ever sell any stock under any circumstances. Cash doesn't need to earn 0%. You can either invest your cash in Bonds (which may lose value) or keep it in some CD or money fund (which won't lose value). These Bond, CD and money market investment are only supposed to be short term, to reduce the bleeding of money (they still lose money compared to inflation, but may be little better than cash). You can buy them just like stocks in a brokerage account.

Below we'll talk about both Bonds and Money market funds. We'll also mention Brokered CD, though more details about CD are in CD section of "Banks".

Here's link explaining various options: https://www.doctorofcredit.com/brokerage-money-market-bond-funds-as-savings-account-alternatives/

TAXES:

You always have to pay Federal income tax as per your tax slab for any interest income. That interest may come from money in banks, money market, bonds, CD, etc. There is one exception to this - Municipal bonds carry no Federal income taxes. However, the interest on these municipal bonds is much lower than what you get on other kind of Bonds. So, for most of the people the saving on federal tax isn't worthwhile. 

However, you may be able to save state income taxes on some of these interest income securities (assuming you live in a state that charges state income tax). This is true for US Treasury bonds, I-Bonds, Federal money market funds, Municipal bonds, etc. In short, anywhere you lend money to Federal, State or local Government, you may be able to save on State income taxes. More details on DoC link below.

Link on DoC: https://www.doctorofcredit.com/savings-taxes-on-earnings-from-high-yield-savings-accounts/

A. Bonds:

We talked about stocks, and how we should always be "invested" in stock ponzi scheme. We also talked about banks, and how we can park our money there in Savings/Checking accounts to get few cents in interest every month. Or if we are looking to get more than few cents, we could get a CD, which locks our money for multiple months to multiple years.

One more thing that we can invest in is loaning our money to public companies and government. Lending to public or private companies is risky, as they may go bankrupt, and we may never see our principle back. Lending to government is less risky, as the government has power to print money, and hence can always pay the money back. Loaning money this way is done via "bonds". Bonds are just like stocks, except that you are in the front line of creditors, if the company goes bankrupt. In stocks, you get back nothing if the company goes bankrupt. But with bonds, you may get something back depending on whatever is left over after liquidating the assets and paying other higher priority creditors. Bonds trade on the stock market just like stocks, their prices change every second. But you do get monthly or quarterly or half yearly interest payment.

Bonds are a good way to get higher interest than your bank will give. As of end of 2021, bonds for public companies were yielding 2% for 10 year investment grade bonds.  Government bonds were were yielding even less than that. The rate is abysmal to start with. There's also a risk of losing money in the bond. You may think of Bonds as a CD, where you lock your money for couple of years. If you take out money before then, you may be charged a pre withdrawal penalty (since for holding of < 2 years, bonds may lose value depending on current interest rate). I said 2 years, because now FED raises interest rate very slowly, so there's no way that interest rates may rise > 1% in any given year. Also long term direction for interest rates is downhill, so you will most likely be always in black, except when you are in it short term for < 2 years. (This has been proved wrong, as FED raised rates about 4% in 2022).

Bond prices fluctuate, so even though you may be collecting monthly dividend, you may still lose money. If the bond price falls by more than your dividend amount, then you are in red (if you have to sell it at that time). The longer you hold bond, less the likely hood that you will lose money. Usually, bonds move in opposite direction to stock market, so if stock market falls hard, bond prices may rise (irrespective of interest rate direction), so you may be able to break even with cash, but not always guaranteed. Bond prices vary mostly based on FED funds rate. If you hold any bond to maturity, then you will never lose money on principle. Be aware of the risk of losing money on bond, no matter how much you collect in interest.

We'll talk about the 2 kinds of bonds: Government Bonds and Corporate Bonds

1. Government Bonds:

We may buy bonds issued by the government directly from their treasury website or thru a brokerage account. These bonds are guaranteed by the government, and they can't default (as the govt can print unlimited amount of money). The bonds have been giving very low interest (i.e 10 yr were yielding 1.5% and 30 year were yielding 2%, with shorter maturity ones yielding close to zero as of Dec 2021). However as of May 2022, tables have turned, and some government bonds are paying more in interest in a year that what corporate bonds are going to pay in multiple years.

When we say Govt bonds, we mean Treasury securities. These treasury securities can be bought via your treasury Direct account. They can also be bought via your brokerage accounts in secondary market or in primary market (i.e new issues) via participating in auction held by Treasury department. Treasury securities consist of Treasury Bills, Treasury notes, Treasury bonds, TIPS (Treasury Inflation protected securities) and Savings Bonds. Below is the link with more details:

Treasury Direct (TD): https://www.treasurydirect.gov/indiv/research/indepth/indepth.htm

Treasury Securities are classified in these 3 categories depending on how long they take to mature. We use these 3 terms interchangeably on this website, so be mindful of that.

• T-Bills: Known as Treasury bills, they refer to Treasury securities having shortest maturity term. They mature in anywhere from 1 month to 1 year. Terms are 4, 8, 13, 26 and 52 weeks. They don't pay interest, but instead sell at a discount to par value. So, their coupon yield is 0% (0.0% rate is what is listed on the Bill), but you buy a $100 bill for may be $99. Then on maturity you get full $100, implying $1 income, which you can think of as interest.
• T-notes: Known as Treasury notes, they refer to Treasury securities having medium maturity term. They mature in anywhere from 2 years to 10 years. Terms are 2, 3, 5, 7 and 10 years.We buy them at par value, and redeem them at par value (unlike T-Bills). They have a interest rate or coupon rate written on the issue. Based on that rate, interest payments are made every 6 months. 
• T-Bonds: Known as Treasury Bonds, they refer to Treasury securities having longest maturity term. They mature in 20 years or 30 years. They are just like T-notes, where interest payments are made every 6 months. T-Bonds usually have higher interest rates than T-notes since you tie up your money for a longer term.

All of these 3 kinds of Treasury securities as well as TIPS have been useless for the past 15 years (i.e 2008-2022) as they have given close to 0% returns. As of Sept 2022, these Treasury securities have suddenly become very popular because of 4%+ interest rates on maturity < 1 yr. Here's few such offerings:

• 05/12/2023 (1 yr treasury > 5%) => https://slickdeals.net/f/16642112-u-s-treasury-short-term-treasury-bills-4-week-52-week-maturity-up-to-5-50-interest
• 09/25/2022 (1 yr treasury > 4%) => https://slickdeals.net/f/16060201-one-year-treasury-constant-maturity-t-bill-4-14

Savings Bonds:

Apart from T-bonds mentioned above, there are another kind of Bonds known as Savings bond. Savings bonds have suddenly become even more popular in this low interest rate environment, as inflation has picked up (Savings bonds rates are tied to inflation). Here are the 3 saving bonds that are sold by the treasury: EE Savings bonds, I Savings bond and H Savings bond (H savings bond have been discontinued). These are the tidbits about savings bond to keep in mind:

• All savings bonds are issued for a maximum of 30 years and earn interest for 30 years unless you cash them out before maturity. You can cash them out after 1 year (Before 1 year, you can't cash them out, no matter what). But if you cash them before 5 years, you lose the last 3 months' interest. (For example, if you cash an EE bond after 18 months, you get the first 15 months of interest.). If you cash them out after 5 years, you pay no penalty.
• One other caveat with savings bonds is that only $10,000 each calendar year for each Social Security Number (including kids, no age limit) is allowed for each type of savings bond. There are some exceptions, which we'll look at later (i.e Buying $10K more per account holder as gift for someone else). So, it's scattered money that you will have to keep tab of, else your family may never see this money once you are gone from this world. For a family of 4 with 2 adults and 2 kids, you could buy a maximum of $40K of savings bonds every year. You could also buy extra $40K as gifts that you can gift to each other (money doesn't need to be gifted to outsider).
• Other problem is that the the bank account that you use to transact on TD website is not easy to change (once you register that bank account). So, you can't close that bank account ever. If for some reason, the bank is gone, then it's a hassle to setup a new bank, as there's no way to verify your identity (as everything is handled online). I've read comments that TD is making it easier to change yourbank accounts, so hopefully this issue will be resolved.
• You save state income taxes on these, but NOT federal income taxes. Since state taxes are usually low to start with, there's not too much in tax savings here.

These are the 2 kinds of savings bonds:

1. EE Savings bonds: EE bonds earns the same rate of interest (a fixed rate) for up to 30 years. When you buy the bond, you know what rate it will earn for at least the first 20 years. Treasury announces the rate for  new bonds each May 1 and November 1. For the last 15 years (from 2008-2022), rates have been close to 0%. Regardless of the rate, at 20 years the bond will be worth twice what you pay for it. If you keep the bond that long, Treasury will make a one-time adjustment then to fulfill this guarantee. What this implies is that you will get at least 3.6% APR for the 1st 20 years. If you hold EE bonds for < 20 years, you get nothing, as interest rates are 0.1%. EE Bonds may be an alternative to 20 year CD. EE bonds are not recommended as the holding period is for ever, and you can get > 3.6% return in stock market in 20 years. Here are the interest rates on EE bonds (click on link on this webpage that shows rates since 2005):

https://www.treasurydirect.gov/indiv/research/indepth/ebonds/res_e_bonds_eeratesandterms.htm

2. I Savings Bonds: I bonds earns interest based on combining a fixed rate and an inflation rate. Fixed rate stays the same for the life of the bond but the inflation rate is set twice a year, and applied to all the I Bonds. For the last 15 years (from 2008-2022), fixed rate of these bonds have been close to 0%. However, the inflation rate has shot up starting 2021, and averaged about 5%-8% from 2021-2022. This has made I bonds very attractive, as you can close the I bonds after a year, lose 3 months of interest and still get more money in interest than what any bank will ever pay you. Historical rates are provided for I savings bond on TD link above. As you can see that since 2008, fixed rate has been 0 (or very close to 0), and variable rate (i.e inflation rate) has been  1%-2% per year. Even though fixed rate can't go below 0, variable rate can go -ve, implying your return may even go -ve. Historical rates on I bonds are provided on link below (scroll to the rates section below): 

https://www.treasurydirect.gov/indiv/research/indepth/ibonds/res_ibonds_iratesandterms.htm

As can be seen, since 2003, fixed rates on I-bonds have been < 1% for 6 months (mostly 0%). Variable rates has mostly been under 2% for 6 months (4% yearly rate when considered for a year). So, annualized rates on these I bonds have mostly been < 5% annualized. The last time it was 5% was in 2008, and then from 2009-2020, it has mostly been < 2%. What we are seeing from 2021 onwards is an anamoly, so make your long term investment plans based on this. I Savings bonds are short term investment to be kept for a couple of years at most.

UPDATE Nov 2022: Fixed rates on I bonds issued starting from Nov 1, 2022 has gone to 0.4%. That means all bonds issued since Nov 1, 2022 will now have a fixed rate of 0.4% instead of 0%. This applies to only bonds issued after Nov 1, 2022 and will remain tied to the I-Bond for the life of the I-Bond. TD may decide to lower this rate any time, but that will affect only new issues from that point on, and NOT existing I-Bonds that had already been issued. This is a nice bump.

There's an article explaining this here: https://www.doctorofcredit.com/treasury-direct-adds-40-fixed-rate-to-i-bonds-on-top-of-6-48/

Here's few links to the deal for I bonds:

• Originally Posted in Apr 2021: https://www.doctorofcredit.com/us-treasury-bonds-rate-set-to-increase-to-7-12-rate-i-bonds/
• Here's another on slickdeals: https://slickdeals.net/f/15758386-us-treasury-series-i-savings-bonds-inflation-rate-earnings-may-october-22-9-62-interest-annualized-for-6-months-limit-10k-year-per-person?src=frontpage

Conclusion: None of these savings bonds are for long term investment. EE bonds are useless, and I bonds can be kept for anywhere between 1-5 years depending on the inflation rate. Only if you get > 5% annualized rates on these is when you should get into the I bonds. As soon as the rates go below < 2% annualized, get out of these. You should think of it as a short term CD (1 yr to 5 yr term deposit CD) and nothing more. Pay the small penalty when you cash out in < 5 years, and you may still come ahead. When people say savings bonds, they usually mean I Savings bond (and NOT EE savings bonds)

2. Corporate Bonds:

Just like government bonds, we can buy corporate bonds. These are bonds issued by private companies. Since the risk of default is higher in these, they pay you a higher interest rate than similar maturity Government bonds. So to reduce the risk of default, instead of buying bond from one company, we can spread our money and buy bonds from several different companies. This diversification works well, similar to how we diversify in stocks. Just like we have stocks ETF and mutual fund, we have equivalent Bond ETF and Bond Mutual Funds (MF). So, we don't have to go and buy bonds from 100 different companies, ETF and MF do that for us.

Bond ETF or bond mutual fund pools in bonds from multiple companies to reduce risk of default. These bond fund may invest in any kind of debt security. Even though we say corporate bond, these bonds may invest in corporate debt, municipal debt, government debt or foreign debt. There are mixed bonds which invest in both corporate bonds and Treasury bonds, while there are Treasury bonds which invest exclusively in treasuries and Corporate bonds which invest exclusively in Treasuries. There are bond ETF/MF which invest in long term debt (i.e bonds maturing in 10 years or more), while there are bond ETF/MF which invest only in short term debt (i.e bonds maturing in a couple of months). All these Bond funds offer different yield depending on mix of bonds and their maturity duration. Safest to buy bonds which invest in very short term debt, as fluctuation in price of Bond is very low (though yield is also low to start with). Anyway, we are just trying to get something better than cash here.

We'll not discuss Bond Mutual Fund (MF), as Bond MF have same drawbacks as Stock mutual fund (i.e MF almost always have higher expense ratio compared to ETF and can only be bought/sold at the end of the day). ETF are always desirable over MF. Below we'll discuss 3 kind of Bond ETF: Long Term ETF, Short term ETF and Ultra short term ETF.

Long term Bond ETF:

These are bonds which hold their securities any where from 5 years to 30 years. Below are few most popular long term bond ETF. All these ETF are mixed bond ETF meaning they invest in Corporate as well as Government debt.

1. iShares Core US Aggregate Bond ETF (AGG):

This ETF offers broad-based exposure to investment grade U.S. bonds. It's number 1 bond ETF and very liquid and has AUM of around $80B as of Dec, 2021. It's expense ratio is only 0.04%. It offers a dividend yield of 2% as of Dec 2021.

2. Vanguard Total Bond Market ETF (BND):

This popular ETF offers exposure to entire investment grade bond market in a single ticker, with holdings in T-Bills, corporates, MBS, and agency bonds. While it holds securities of all maturity lengths, it is heavily weighted towards the short end of the curve. It's number 2 bond ETF and very liquid and has same AUM as those of AGG. It's expense ratio is same as AGG at 0.04%. It offers a slightly higher dividend yield of > 2% as of Dec 2021.

3. BNY Mellon Core Bond ETF (BKAG):

This ETF was introduced recently in 2020, and tries to mimick AGG. Best part is that it has 0 expense ratio, which in unheard of in Bond ETF world. However, it's spread is higher at 3 cents, since it has AUM of only $200M. It's dividend is also lower (at 1.3% as of Dec 2021) than those of AGG and BND, not sure why?

Personally, I would just go with either Vanguard ETF (BND) or BKAG for long term. However, as stated earlier, long term Bond ETF are just not worth investing.

UPDATE Apr 30, 2022: As of today, corporate bonds (i.e Bond ETF AGG) have lost about 15% of the value from their peak. They were yielding about 1.5% at their peak, meaning people who bought bonds a year back, are getting 0% interest on their bonds (This is due to the fact that $15 that they are going to collect in interest over next 10 years, is negated by $15 that the value of bond itself has come down by). So, when you cash out these bonds in less than 10 years, you get much less than what you paid ($85 in principal + $1-$10 in interest), implying -ve return. Of course, if you hold it for 10 years or more, bond prices would recover and you will be made whole. Anyone who bought these long term Bond ETF in the last 10 years has lost money compared to cash. So, only time to buy these long term bond ETF is when they yield > 3%. Anything below that is too risky.

Short term Bond ETF:

These are bond ETF which hold their securities from a year to < 5 years. Although, the risk of losing money due to loss in bond price is still high here, though not as high as Long term Bond ETF. I wouldn't consider these ETF at all, as they don't give any advantage over stocks, and are more nuisance. I've listed 1 example each of Corporate Bond ETF as well as Govt Bond ETF, just for completeness.

1. Vanguard Short-Term Treasury ETF (VGSH):  This invests in 1-3 yr Treasury bonds. Expense ratio=0.04%. Yield was pretty low as of start of 2022, but have started moving up as FED rates have gone up.

2. Vanguard Short-Term Corporate Bond ETF (VCSH): This invests in short term corporate bonds. Expense ratio=0.04%. Yield is higher than similar Treasury bonds.

Ultra Short term Bond ETF:

Below are few largest and popular ultra short term bond ETF. These are bonds which hold their securities for less than a year. So, the risk of losing money due to loss in bond price is very low, especially if you hold it closer to the maturity term of their holdings (which is less than a year). Only downside here is that short term interest rates have been close to 0 for last 10 years (from 2010 to 2020), so these ETF have given close to 0% return. However, when short term interest rates are > 1%, it's advisable to park your brokerage cash into these ultra short term ETF. They give you better yield than what bank accounts give you.

There are 31 such ETF listed below. Some of them are exclusively invested in US treasuries (most safe), while few are invested in corporate bonds too.

https://www.etf.com/channels/ultra-short-term-etfs

I've listed 1 example each of Govt Bond ETF as well as Corporate Bond ETF.with very low expense ratio:

1. iShares 0-3 Month Treasury Bond ETF (SGOV):

This primarily invests in 0-3 month Treasury bills. So, it's return is lower as Treasury bills have lowest interest rate at any given time. It's NAV is around $100. It's expense ratio is lowest at 0.05%. It pays out dividend every month around 1st of the month.

Here's SGOV details directly from ishares website: https://www.ishares.com/us/products/314116/ishares-0-3-month-treasury-bond-etf

If you click on detailed holdings, it brings up an excel sheet. That shows only 12 holdings, 25% of which is in money market, remaining in 1-3 month treasury (as of Aug 2022, Treasuries are maturing in Aug, Sept and Oct 2022). T-Bills show 0.0% coupon rate as expected (see discussion above).

Dividend schedule for this is shown on far left of the page under "distributions" (click on "view full table"). You'll notice that dividend has been 0.5 cents every month that the Fed had interest rates tied to 0%. So this fund was able to get you 0.05% yield every year on avg, which is as close to absolute 0 as it can get.

Below is the table of what T-bills were yielding each month of 2022, and what was the yield that SGOV gave for that month. SGOV yield for a given month was close to the avg of 1 month T-bill for current month, 2 month T-bill yield for previous month, and 3 month T-Bill yield for 2 months back. This is as expected, since most 2 and 3 month T-Bills are from prior months and have older rates. Also, since 25% of the fund money is in lower yielding money market, yield goes even lower for SGOV. However NAV of SGOV has held pretty well, since the fund continuously rolls into newer T-Bills, as old ones keep on maturing. We should expect to see SGOV yielding close to 3% by end of 2022.

SGOV Yield for 2022:

For year 2022, Total dividend paid was ~$1.45 which amounted to 1.5% dividend yield. The last dividend was paid on 15th Dec, 2022, so 15 days of interest will be paid in 2023. Avg Treasury yield was about 1.7% for 2 month T-bills, so SGOV came close to what we would have gotten by buying T-Bills directly.

For 2023, Total dividend paid for 6 months (until June 2023) is $2.27 for first 6 months (avg Treasury yield was 4.8% for 2 month T-Bill for 1st 6 months), and $2.61 for last 6 months (avg Treasury yield was 5.5% for 2 month T-Bill for last 6 months). We get extra 15 days of interest from 2022 in Feb, 2023, but also lost 15 days of interest for Dec 2023. Assuming they cancel out, total interest payment was $4.88. Based on 2 month T-Bill, we should have gotten $2.4 for 1st 6 months, and $2.75 for last 6 months, but SGOV underpaid during both of these periods. So, SGOV holds up well with T-Bill interest rates, though coming in lower at 4.9% instead of 5.1% interest rate. We may lose a little in principal (avg 0.2% or 20 cents depending on interest rate direction. SGOV has varied from $100 to $100.20 just after paying the dividend, so assuming it goes back to $100, you will lose 20 cents). So, better to go with SGOV as you end up getting close to T-Bill rates, instead of going with Money Market Mutual Fund (explained below).

2. BlackRock Ultra Short-Term Bond ETF (ICSH):

This primarily invests in broad market investment grade corporate bonds. It's NAV is around $50. Expense ratio is low at 0.08%. It's 5 year return has been 1.5%. It pays out dividend every month. Short term treasury are yielding around 2% as of June 2022, but ICSH paid only 5 cents in dividend for June 2022, implying a yield of 1.2%. Since, ICSH invests in Corporate bonds, we expect to see higher yields than treasury bonds. So, ICSH yield is lot lower than similar term treasury yield. We'll need to watch dividend payout for July, Aug and Sept 2022. Dividend should be at least 10 cents for each of these months with NAV at $50, that will imply we are getting around 2.5% dividend as expected.

Here's ICSH details directly from ishares website: https://www.ishares.com/us/products/258806/ishares-liquidity-income-etf

If you click on detailed holdings, it brings up an excel sheet. That shows about 450 holdings (the webpage lists only 234 holdings though). 60% of the holdings have maturity < 3 months (30% of the holdings with maturity < 7 days), but 15% of the holdings have maturity > 1 yr. Weighted avg maturity is still high at 8 months. That puts the principal at risk, and this is why we see the price of this fund went from $50.50 in Oct 2021 to about $50 in Apr 2022, implying a loss of 1% loss in bond price. That wouldn't have happened if all the holdings had maturity of < 6 months (as with SGOV). Maturity wise, ICSH holdings are kind of messed up, as they load on real short maturity and also load up on real long maturity. That means you get the disadvantage of lowest interest rate (for real short maturity holdings), along with the principal risk of these very long maturity holdings. So, it's guaranteed to lose money either in interest loss or in principal loss.

Dividend schedule for this is shown on far left of the page under "distributions" (click on "view full table"). You'll notice that dividend has been 1-2 cents every month that the Fed had interest rates tied to 0%. So this fund was still able to get you 0.5% yield every year on avg, which is good considering the fact that SGOV was yielding absolute 0.

Conclusion: Comparing all these ETF, only ultra short term ETF (with avg maturity < 12 months) make sense. Among the 2 of such ETF listed above, SGOV has lower expense ratio and lower maturity than ICSH. SGOV guarantees almost no principal loss due to bond price fluctuation. We do get a lower yield with SGOV than with ICSH, but it's lot better than what banks and CD pay you when short term interest rates are > 1%.  Also, we are able to get out of SGOV at any time, while ICSH may involve some loss if we try to get out in < 1 year. Also, ICSH is corporate bond, so it should be at least 1% more in interest rate than SGOV, but we don't see that. Considering all of this, SGOV is a preferred investment over ICSH when Fed fund rates > 1%. Below that rate, putting most of the money in high yielding kasasa bank accounts makes sense. I would just stay away from ICSH (not worth investing).

B. Money Market fund (MMF):

Apart from bonds, we also have money funds, which is like a short term loan to a company. These money funds never lose money (principle is safe) in practice, though theoretically they could lose money. These money market funds have a NAV or price of $1. You are essentially guaranteed that price will always remain a dollar (i.e you will never lose money). However, the dividend that you get in these will be close to 0 (when Fed funds rate are 0%), as their interest rates are tied to short term (1 month - 6 month) treasury rates. Also expense ratio is high, which almost eats into all the dividend. So, you will never make any money when Fed fund rates are < 1%. You are better off putting that money as cash in some other bank account (Tmobile account that earns you 1% with no limits, see in "bank account" section), and then transfer the money to brokerage account, only when you need it. However, when short term interest rates are high (i.e > 2%), then it makes sense to put money in these money market funds. They can be bought at any brokerage forms.

I'm listing below couple of money market funds for completeness. These are the funds issued by various brokerage firms. Different brokerage firms have their own money market funds, and you can only buy them at their own brokerage firm commission free. To buy at other brokerage firms, you have to pay an extra fee. For ex, if you try to buy a schwab MMF at Vanguard, then Schwab may charge you $50-$100 for buying it. So, first try to find out which MMF are offered by your brokerage, which of them give the highest interest rate and if the interest rate is close to what you get in Bond or CD, then you may consider these.

1. Prime money funds: schwab value advantage - investor shares (SWVXX) = Offered at Schwab only. expense ratio=0.34%, 10 year yearly return=0.5% (for 2021, yearly return is 0.03%)
2. Prime money funds: schwab advantage - ultra shares (SNAXX) = Offered at Schwab only. expense ratio=0.19% 10 yr yearly return=0.6% (for 2021, yearly return is 0.03%). However, minimum investment of $1M required.
3. Vanguard Federal Money Market Fund (VMFXX) = expense ratio=0.11%, 10 yr return is low. Avg maturity period of holdings is 2 months, so you get yield similar to 3 month Treasury bills.

Conclusion:

You can see that 10 year return for these money market funds can't even get to 1% from 2011 to 2021, when short term interest rates were close to 0. So, MMF are useless most of the times (as federal fund rates would remain close to 0 most of the times). I would recommend buying Ultra short term ETF over these Money Market funds, as those ETF have lower expense and higher yield. There's no additional advantage that these money funds offer over similar bond ETF. The only guarantee that MMF offer is their NAV value which remains tied to $1 and never fluctuates. But for this guarantee, they take a lot of money from you by giving you much lower interest rate. MMF are advertised heavily by Brokerage firms, as it's cash cow for them (with such high expense ratio). I would just buy Bond ETF (Such as SGOV), and stay away from MMF.

C. Brokered Certificate of Deposit (CD):

We now come to the most interesting part of fixed income investing. Apart from bonds and MMF, you can also buy CD at your brokerage firms. These generally give you rates competitive to Bonds and MMF. These CDs are not issued by the brokerage firm, but instead other banks, credit unions, companies, etc put their CDs on sale at these brokerage firms. These CDs are protected by same FDIC or similar insurance that is offered on CDs sold by banks/CU. These are called Brokered CDs as the brokerage firm is just acting as a middle man to connect you to a a seller selling these CDs. These CD generally have higher interest rates than what Banks give you for similar term CD on their own website.

It's also very easy to buy or sell CDs on a click of button (similar to buying/selling of stocks). Also, no worries of CD going beyond your maturity date, as money will automatically be moved in your brokerage account, once CD matures (unless you have it set on auto renewal). There is no paperwork to fill either. Other advantage is that all your money is one place and no headache to keep records of your CDs at other banks. Brokered CDs are offered in terms ranging from 1 month to 30 years, and there are thousands of CDs competing for your money. All of these CDs are the ones issued by banks/CU, but they are sold here, since brokerage firms give these CDs a much bigger market than they can otherwise access. Brokerage firms themselves don't make much, if any at all, money on these CDs (they do make tons of money on their MMF though).

Broker CDs not only give you higher interest rate, but they also allow you to cash it out prematurely (provided CD has the option of being sellable in secondary market). You can buy/sell CD on the broker's website anytime you want, provided the trading market is open. You may lose some money in the process as the CD price in the secondary market may be higher or lower than you paid for it. Depends on the interest rate at that time. But the amount of money you may lose is very small compared to what you may lose in a bank.

One of the downsides of Brokered CDs is that CD don't get opened immediately. You lose at least 1-2 weeks of interest, before the trade settles and interest starts accruing on CD. So, on a 1 year CD, you lose about 5% of interest amount. Due to this, it's wise to open brokered CDs for > 6 months only.

I've used Schwab and Ameritrade brokerage accounts for buying CD and Bonds, and I'm just impressed with the ease and the much higher interest that you get on those CD. As of September 2022, a lot of Brokered CD are offering rates > 4% for 1 year CD. Even 1 month CD are offering over 3% rates (As of Jan 2023, 1 month CD have rates > 4%. As of Aug 2023, 1 month CD have rates > 5%). You can never get anywhere close to these rates with a regular Bank/CU CD. For best CD rates, head to section on "Best CD accounts".

Buying Bonds / CD / MMF at Brokerage Firms:

As stated earlier,  all of these Bonds, MMF and CD can be bought via your brokerage account by click of  button. They can also be sold very easily too. There are no fees charged by the brokerage firms, and you don't need to call or talk to anyone over the phone or send any paperwork. It's similar to buying/selling of stocks. There's usually a link to "Bonds, CD or other similar securities" on your brokerage website. That will show various kinds of Bonds, MMF, CD available for purchase. Just call and ask your brokerage firm and they will gladly guide you thru the process.

We'll talk in short about how to buy these:

1. Bonds: Bonds are of 2 types. Govt bonds and corporate bond.
   1. Govt Bonds: These may be bought directly online at treasurydirect website, but it's always better to buy it via your Brokerage firm (not the savings bonds, just T-bills, T-notes and T-bonds. (Savings bonds can only be bought at TD website). By buying it via Brokerage firm, you retain the ability to sell them at any point whereas positions purchased in a treasurydirect account can only be held to maturity or transferred to a brokerage firm. You can purchase all treasuries thru brokerage firms such as Schwab, Fidelity, etrade etc. These treasuries may be bought in primary market as well as in secondary market.
      1. Primary market: Here we are buying bonds directly from the treasury by participating in the auction. Most brokerage firms allow you to participate in the auction, and buy treasuries this way. They may charge a commission though for providing this privilege.
         1. This is a link that shows how to buy Bill/notes/bonds offered by Treasury during the auction directly from various Brokerage. The author says that it saves you money on buy and sell as secondary markets will always have some spread. But then you are tied to the treasury until it matures. You may not sell it in secondary market (see next section)
            
            1. Link: https://thefinancebuff.com/treasury-bills-cd-money-market.html
      2. Secondary market: Here we are buying/selling treasuries from other people which were ultimately bought in the primary market. Here market participants decide the price of bonds, and they are very close to fair price based on interest rate in effect at that time. Most of the brokerage firms don't charge any fees or commission for buying/selling in secondary market. So, I would just buy/sell in secondary market as there's no difference in the return. The small disadvantage of buying/selling in secondary market is the spread that you have to pay. It's usually a cent or two for each way transaction.
   2. Corporate Bonds: You may purchase corporate bonds too similar to Govt bonds. They may be bought/sold in Primary market or secondary market. There are no fees whatsoever to purchase these thru your brokerage firm. And you can purchase treasuries in the secondary market (those that were previously sold in an auction) as well as brokered bank CD's which have finally caught up to treasury rates @ intermediate maturities. And  Added advantage is that all your money is at one place.
   3. ETF bonds (Government bonds / Corporate bonds): ETF bonds allow us to diversify amongst different kinds of bonds, so ETF bonds are preferred. They can be bought/sold just like stocks. ETF are of all kinds of bonds (govt bond, corporate bonds, municipal bonds, etc)
2. MMF: MMF can be bought/sold just like stocks. However, MMF are speciifc to a brokerage firm, and if you try to buy/sell MMF of a different brokerage, you have to pay commission. So, not worth buying MMF.
3. Brokered CD: CD can also be bought/sold just like bonds. CD can be primary CD or Secondary CD.
   1. Primary market: Just like bonds being sold in primary market, CD also get bought by directly buying it from the issuer of the CD. Usually CD issuers are banks, Credit Union and private companies.
   2. Secondary market: Similar to bonds, CDs may be bought/sold in secondary market. Look at the details of the CD which shows the original price, current price, current yield to maturity, etc. To keep it simple, I just buy it from Primary market.

Conclusion:

Now knowing all about Bonds, MMF and CD, it's time to decide which one is best. We already know the answer to this. When Fed fund rates are close to 0, all these will give you 0% interest, so at such times, keep your money in Kasasa Bank accounts or a Tmobile bank account (see in Bank section). When Fed fund rates are > 1%, keep your money in SGOV ETF. You may also keep your money in short term brokered CDs, as these will most likely give you interest rates little higher than what SGOV might be offering you. Remember, that investing in Bonds, MMF and CDs is just short term. For long term, you put your money in the stock market Ponzi scheme !!

Details

Published: Sunday, 23 January 2022 10:01

Hits: 903

Linux Pop!_OS:

Best one for gamers. The user interface is very similar to Windows. They have support for nvidia and amd gpu, as they come bundled with proprietery amd/nvidia gpu drivers. That is what makes them suitable for gamers, as they work out f=of the box for gpu.

Installating OS:

Download, install using these links:

https://bln364.com/dual-boot-pop-os-and-windows-10/

The only deviation from steps in link above, is that we will be doing partitioing of our hard drive withn windows OS itself. Details below:

steps:

1. Download Pop!_OS ISO:

 I downloaded "Linux Mint 19, Cinnamon 64-bit" edition. Follow link below to get Linux mint.

https://pop.system76.com/

Click "Download" button, and then click on "download 21.10" (this is the latest as of Jan, 2022). If you have "nvidia" graphics card, then choose the one with "download 21.10 (nvidia)".

2. Copy ISO files to USB drive:

You need linux already installed in order to copy the iso to usb from within linux. We don't use UUI to burn the iso as explained previously. Use cp cmd as explained under installation.

1A. Use cp cmd to copy to usb drive

sudo cp /home/aarav/Downloads/Pop-os_21.10_amd64_nvidia_3.iso /dev/sdb => Do not use /dev/sdb1. See in "Linux Installation section for details"

3. Reboot Windows:

Once copied, plug it in windows laptop and goto "advanced startup", and choose USB drive (as detailed in Linux installation section. The system boots directly into Pop!_OS on reboot.

4. Setup:

After initial language setting, and other minor things, it will give 2 options "clean install" or "custom (advanced) install". Choose "custom (advanced)" for dual boot, else it will wipe out windows OS.

Next it will take you to which partition to use for Linux OS. Here we select the partion that we created in windows. If you haven't created partitions in windows, you can create partitions here by clicking on "modify partitions" at the bottom left of the screen.

We need 3 partitions: one for root (/), one for boot (/boot/efi) and last one for swap. For me it showed  unallocated partition /dev/sda3 that I created in windows. To modify this partition to have 3 partitions within it, I click on "modify partition", and follow instructions to change partition size to have root, boot and swap. Once done, click apply. Partitioning is done, and we come back to main "install popup". Here we need to assign the 3 partitions correctly. To do that, we follow stesp below:

• root: We need to have root partition. Select that /dev/sda3 or whatever partition we assigned for that. choose "use partition", "Format" and "use as" root (/). Filesystem is left as "Defaut (ext4)".
• boot: We need to have a partition for "use as " "boot (/boot/efi). select that /dev/sda4 partition. We don't format it, as it's from windows efi.
• swap: We select /dev/sda7 or whatever swap partition we created in gparted. We will use that as swap partition by selecting "use as" swap.

We need to have all 3 paritions assigned, or else else "erase and install" button to continue won't be clickable. Once we click on "erase and install", installation starts.

Once done, we have

Details

Published: Monday, 10 January 2022 07:34

Hits: 2267

Deals:

Here are the deals from 2023. For deals from 2022, go to DEALS 2022

Deals starting from November till Christmas are under "Black Friday - 2023". go to BLACK FRIDAY - 2023

I've sticky deals and regular deals. Regular deals are posted below which are offered just one time. Sticky deals have separate section of their own, as they refer to deals which are offered multiple times a year.

2023: 

11/21/2023: AT&T Fiber Internet plans with $350 in Visa Gift cards

Look in "internet services" under services section for details of the offer: internet service

11/21/2023: WeBull Brokerage Bonus Offer of up to $18K for IRA transfer => expires 19th Dec, 2023

Look in brokerage account bonus section for details of the offer: best brokerage bonus

11/14/2023: Ebay 5% off (max $50 discount) with code: TAKE5BOFA => expires 12/31/2023

Look in bank account bonus section for details of the offer: stores

11/05/2023: Capital One - $1500 bonus for $100K+ in deposit in Savings account (nationwide) => expires Dec 6, 2023

Look in bank account bonus section for details of the offer: best bank bonus

11/05/2023: CIBC - $500 bonus for $50K+ in deposit in Savings account (nationwide) => expires Dec 19, 2023

Look in bank account bonus section for details of the offer: best bank bonus

11/01/2023: Fidelity Starter Pack + Fidelity Bloom Offer of $230  - expires Dec 11, 2023

Look in brokerage account bonus section for details of the offer: best brokerage bonus

10/30/2023: Taco Bell - Free Doritos locos Tacos in app => expires Nov 5, 2023

Look in "fast food" under food section for details of the offer: fast food

10/28/2023: Robinhood (RH) Brokerage Offer of 1% bonus on total assets transferred  (3% bonus on IRA transfers) - expires Dec 8, 2023 expires Apr 30, 2024

Look in brokerage account bonus section for details of the offer: best brokerage bonus

10/20/2023: TastyTrade (previously known as TastyWorks) Brokerage Bonus Offer of $2K for $100K+  - expires Mar 31, 2024

Look in brokerage account bonus section for details of the offer: best brokerage bonus

10/20/2023: Chime - $245 in SwagBucks for $200+ in direct deposit within 30 days (nationwide) => expires Oct 31, 2023 (extended to Nov 30, 2023)

Look in bank account bonus section for details of the offer: best bank bonus

10/15/2023: WeBull Brokerage Bonus Offer of $2400 - $8000 for depositing $100K+ in securities and/or cash => expires 30th Oct, 2023

Look in brokerage account bonus section for details of the offer: best brokerage bonus

10/11/2023: Dominos Offer - 1 Free Medium Pizza with online order of $7.99 or more (incl Tax) => expires 02/11/2024

Look in "fast food" under food section for details of the offer: fast food

10/10/2023: Dell Inspiron Laptop for $308 (possibly $208 with 2 Amex cards): 

Look in "electronics" under shopping section for details of the offer: electronics

10/10/2023: Target : Free 10 Progresso Canned soup + $8 money maker=> expires on 10/31/2023

Look in "food/grocery" section for details of the offer: food/grocery

10/03/2023: National Taco Day deals - Oct 4 only

Look in "fast food" under food section for details of the offer: fast food

10/01/2023: M1 Finance Brokerage Bonus Offer of $250-$15000 for transferring stocks - expires Nov 15, 2023

Look in brokerage account bonus section for details of the offer: best brokerage bonus

10/01/2023: Wells Fargo - $325 for $1K+ in direct deposit within 90 days (nationwide) => expires Nov 13, 2023 (extended to Jan 16, 2024)

Look in bank account bonus section for details of the offer: best bank bonus

09/27/23: Olive Garden - Unlimited Pasta for $14 - limited time:

Look in "restaurant" under food section for details of the offer: restaurants

09/15/2023: American Express - $250 bonus for $500+ in direct deposit by Dec 10, 2023 (nationwide for Amex Credit card members only) => expires Oct 31, 2023

Look in bank account bonus section for details of the offer: best bank bonus

08/09/2023: Taco Bell - Free Doritos locos Tacos every Tuesday from 08/15 - 09/05:

Look in "fast food" under food section for details of the offer: fast food

08/01/2023: Costco: 1 year membership for $60 (includes $45 Costco eGC + $40 off $250+ online purchase) => expiry unknown

Look in bank account bonus section for details of the offer: stores

06/01/2023: Mobil1 Oil Rebate: $6 to $10 per 5 quart oil, Limit 2 per household. Available at multiple stores for various prices => Runs from 3 months from 06/01/2022 to 08/31/2022

Look in "gasoline/oil deals" under Auto section for details of the offer: gasoline/oil deals

05/27/2023: Southwest $500 GC for $430 on costco.com : expires 05/28/2023 

Look in "flights" under food section for details of the offer: flights

05/26/2023: ebay - Refurbished Eufy RoboVac G32 Pro for $60 (with 2 yr warranty)

Look in shopping section for details of the offer: homeowner items

05/01/2023: UMB checking account $400 offer (only valid in select states). =>  expires Sept 30, 2023 (extended to Nov 30, 2023)

Look in bank account bonus section for details of the offer: best bank bonus

04/14/2023: Sam's Club : Free Chloe's Frozen pop 12 ct box => expires after 1st 5000 redemptions

Look in "food/grocery" section for details of the offer: food/grocery

04/12/2023: Cheap ticket from USA to India 

Look in "flights" under food section for details of the offer: flights

04/02/2023: P&G - $15 rebate on $50+ for P&G selected items bought from any store: valid 04/02/23 to 06/30/23

Look in "stores" under shopping section for details of the offer: stores

03/31/2023: PNC - $400 bonus for direct deposit (nationwide ??) => expires June 30, 2023 (extended to August 31, 2023) (extended to Oct 31, 2023) extended until 01/02/2024

Look in bank account bonus section for details of the offer: best bank bonus

03/17/2023: TBK - $600 bonus for direct deposit + other activities (only in selected states) => expires May 27, 2023

Look in bank account bonus section for details of the offer: best bank bonus

03/14/2023: Southwest: 20% Off Points Bookings With Promo Code SAVE20NOW => expires 03/16/2023

Look in "flights" under food section for details of the offer: flights

03/10/23: Groupon Gift Card Offer - Buy Various GC on discount (expiry - unknown):

Look in gift card section for details of the offer: gift cards

03/03/2023: Southwest $500 GC for $430 on costco.com : expires 03/05/2023

Look in "flights" under food section for details of the offer: flights

03/03/2023: US Bank - $600 for $10K+ in direct deposit in 3 months(only in selected states) => expires Apr 11, 2023 

Look in bank account bonus section for details of the offer: best bank bonus

03/01/2023: Pennzoil Oil Rebate: $20 reabte for 10 quart synthetic oil => Runs from March 1, 2023 - September 30, 2023

Look in "gasoline/oil deals" under Auto section for details of the offer: gasoline/oil deals

02/05/2023: Amazon - 1 TB Crucial MX500 SSD for $62, 2TB for $117

Look in "electronics" under shopping section for details of the offer: electronics

02/01/2023: Free Hard Disk Monitoring Software for download - expires Feb 28, 2023

Look in "electronics" under shopping section for details of the offer: electronics

01/25/2023: Truist - $400 for $1K+ in direct deposit (only in selected states) => expires Apr 14, 2023, extended to July 25, 2023

Look in bank account bonus section for details of the offer: best bank bonus

01/19/2023: Dell - 27 inch 1080P gaming monitor for $200 + Free $125 Dell Promo GC - expiry unknown

Look in "electronics" under shopping section for details of the offer: electronics

01/16/2023: Walgreens - Multiple items for cheap at Walgreens for week of 01/15/23 to 01/21/23

Look in "Personal care & Apparel" under shopping section for details of the offer: Personal Care & Apparel

01/13/2023: Chase Checking + Savings Account $900 offer => Expires Apr 19, 2023 Expires Jan 24, 2024 Expires Apr 17, 2024

Look in bank account bonus section for details of the offer: best bank bonus

01/09/2023: Walgreens 5X7 magnet photo for $1 - Code 5x7MAG (expires 01/10/2023)

Look in "photo" under shopping section for details of the offer: photo

01/07/2023: Lowes (Select stores only) - 65W/90W LED bulbs for ~$0.20 to $0.30 per bulb => on clearance

Look in "electronics" under shopping section for details of the offer: electronics

01/05/2023: Public Brokerage Bonus Offer of $600 for depositing $100K+ => continuation from 2022

Look in brokerage account bonus section for details of the offer: best brokerage bonus

01/01/2023: P&G - $15 rebate on $50+ for P&G selected items bought from any store: valid 01/01/23 to 04/01/23

Look in "stores" under shopping section for details of the offer: stores

01/01/2023: Dominos Offer - $3 Tip for carryout order of $5 or more (incl Tax) => expires 03/26/2023

Look in "fast food" under food section for details of the offer: fast food

12/30/2022: M1 Finance Brokerage Bonus Offer of $250-$10000 for transferring stocks - expires Feb 28, 2023

Look in brokerage account bonus section for details of the offer: best brokerage bonus

Details

Published: Monday, 10 January 2022 07:26

Hits: 1381

Deals 2020:

Here are the archived deals from 2020. For most recent deals goto DEALS

2020:

EXPIRED: 12/25/2020: Walgreens cheap toothpaste offer from 27 Dec:

Every year, walgreens/CVS offer free or cheap toothpaste razor around Thanksgiving/Christmas. This year walgreens is offering a couple of items for cheap as toothpaste, razors, body wash, detergent, etc.

https://slickdeals.net/f/14727830-walgreens-free-crest-0-12-colgate-more-starting-dec-27

one such deal is for shaving cream. You get $4.50 for 2 shaving gels and get $4 in walgreens cash. You have 1 year to use your walgreens cash, before they expire.

https://slickdeals.net/f/14732000-2-count-7-oz-gillette-series-shave-gel-4-walgreens-rewards-4-25-free-store-pickup

EXPIRED: 12/14/2020: McDonalds Holiday deal from Dec 14 - Dec 24:

One free item each day with any purchase of $1+.  You need a McDonald App though. On Dec 24th, you can get free item w/o needing to purchase anything else. My kids like the apple pie and some other pie that they sell for a dollar. Or you can buy McCafe for $2.

https://slickdeals.net/f/14685083-mcdonald-s-daily-holiday-deals-free-any-size-hot-or-iced-coffee-w-minimum-1-purchase-via-mcdonald-s-app

EXPIRED: 12/14/2020: Free $10Walgreens GC with purchase of $30 GC for Dominos pizza: expires 12/19/2020

This is a yearly sale at Walgreens that has been going on for the last couple of years around Christmas/Thanksgiving. They offer $10 Walgreens GC free with purchase of select GC during Christmas holidays. This year they have so far offered $10 free walgreens GC with purchase of 2 Dominos GC. The lowest denomination Dominos GC that you can buy at walgreens is $15, so effectively you get $10 off (or 33% discount on Dominos GC). I always consider Pharmacy GC at par value, since youcan use pharmacy GC (as CVS, Walgreens) to pay for prescriptions.

https://slickdeals.net/f/14700779-10-walgreens-gift-card-free-when-you-buy-2-domino-s-15-each-gift-cards-in-store-only-30

EXPIRED: 12/10/2020: $300 Visa Gift card for $291:

This is a money maker of $9. You can use the Visa Gift card to pay doctor's bills, insurance, utilities, etc (don't use it to buy expensive stuff online, as it won't give you any protection that credit cards provide)

https://www.doctorofcredit.com/officedepot-com-gcm-save-15-instantly-on-300-visa-giftcard-2/

EXPIRED: 12/10/2020: BBVA select credit card with $1000 sign on bonus:

This is one of the best sign on bonus. See in "credit cards" section: credit cards

EXPIRED: 12/04/2020:  $200 Visa GC Offer at Lowe's:

Lowe's is selling $200 Visa gift card with $15 free Lowes egiftcard. You have to buy $200 Visa GC in Lowes store, and then get get $15 Lowes GC by going to a website as mentioned in link below. Not a great offer, as you pay about $200+$7=$207 for visa GC and get $200 Visa GC+ $15 GC. That implies that you get $15 Lowes GC for $7 effectively. Since Lowes GC go on sale for 20% off, you are getting about $5 Lowes GC for free. Not worth for me, but if you have a chase offer, it might save you few more bucks.

https://www.doctorofcredit.com/lowes-purchase-200-visa-giftcard-get-15-visa-giftcard-limit-2-stack-with-10-chase-offer/

EXPIRED: 11/28/2020: Bio Bidet from amazon for $25:

This Bio Bidet is on sale for a pretty good price. It has dual nozzle spray. Cheapest ones go for $20, so $25 for a high rated bidet isn't bad.

https://slickdeals.net/f/14635759-bio-bidet-slimedge-dual-nozzle-toilet-attachment-25-free-shipping

Direct link is here:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07CGVBZGL

EXPIRED: 11/25/2020: 15 piece PC tool kit for ~$15:

If you have to do any work on PC (i.e opening it, unscrewing parts etc), this is a good tool kit to have. I bought something similar to this for free about 10 years ago from Rosewell and it's still working great. This is little expensive compared to the free one, but considering all the free items with it (4 items in total), might be worth it. It's free shipping

https://slickdeals.net/f/14611366-15-piece-rosewill-tool-kit-rtk-015-computer-tool-kit-10oz-rosewill-compressed-gas-duster-rosewill-anti-static-wrist-strap-band-for-12-49-fsss

EXPIRED: 11/22/2020: 4K projector for $1000:

Finally a 4K projector for < $1000. Good deal, avialable from both Adorama and B&H Photo Video.  Both of these are reputable merchants, so can't go wrong with any of them. If you have american express Credit card, they have $25 credit for spending $250+ at adorama, so you may want to buy from Adorama to get extra $25 off.

https://slickdeals.net/f/14558183-benq-tk800m-3000-lumens-4k-uhd-home-theater-projector-with-hdr-and-hlg-999-free-shipping

11/20/2020: Krispy Kreme $25 egiftcard for $20:

UPDATE: 05/01/2021: Offer still ongoing on groupon. Also, chase cards or other credit cards were giving 10% back on groupon (see under offers in your credit card website), so use those cards to maximize the deal.

Groupon has Krispy Kreme $25 egiftcard for $20. Using a cashback website will earn you some cashback too (topcashback and ebates have 10% cashback on this, as it's a local deal). I'm not a fan of giftcards, but Krispy Kreme ones are safer, since they can be used in store only?, and hackers don't target these. Krispy Kreme has some of the best donuts that I've eaten. My kids love it too. They usually have promotion for "get 1 dozen glazed donuts free when you buy a dozen". Since their regular price is $12/dozen, you get 24 donuts for $12 or $0.50/donut. With 20% giftcard, you are paying $0.40 for each donut, which is the cheapest donut you can find anywhere (including walmart). Any groupon coupons don't apply on giftcards.

https://www.groupon.com/deals/krispy-kreme-e-gift-card

EXPIRED: 11/19/2020: Paypal Offer for $25:

If you have a paypal account, they have a promotion going where if you if you make 3 transactions of  $35+ each at participating merchants, they give you $25 credit. One of this is walmart.com. Just just buy $35+ physical GC on walmart.com in 3 separate transaction, and choose "paypal checkout" instead of your credit card. For "paypal checkout" to show up, in step 3 of "place order", click edit to change your credit card, then click "more", and it will show you "paypal checkout" option. Payapl offers are hit or miss. If you don't get the credit, there is no use calling customer service as they won't even know about the offer and don't have any way of verifying it. So, at your own risk 

https://slickdeals.net/f/14570765-get-25-cashback-for-your-holiday-shopping

UPDATE (12/15/2020): Paypal, as usual, didn't pay the bonus to anyone. I got a coupon for $25 after emailing them. If you don't email them, you will get nothing. There's no customer service number to call. See in comments section in above link, on how to write the email.

11/18/2020: American Express Offer for $20 on $300 Amex GC: (expiry: unknown, usually amex offers remain there for a while, until enough people have signed up).

UPDATE 05/01/2021: people are still getting this offer on their credit cards.

On your amex credit card, you may see an offer to get $20 in credit, for purchasing $300 in Amex GC. Buy an egift card. You can get the purchase fee waived by applying code: AXP1220HP. This is free $20, since you can use the virtual Amex card most of the places online (i.e pay bills for your internet, phone, utilities, doctor, etc)

 https://slickdeals.net/f/14559713-amex-offers-spend-300-at-amexgiftcard-com-receive-20-credit-valid-for-select-cardholders

EXPIRED: 11/18/2020: Subway Offer - BOGO (expires 11/22/2020):

https://slickdeals.net/f/14567279-subway-restaurant-any-subway-footlong-b1g1-free-w-qr-coupon

 buy 1 get 1 free. So, 2 foot long veggie subway with veggie patties for $7 (or veggie delite without a veggie patty for $6). You can also get 2 free cookie by submitting a review on link provided on your receipt (even though it's for next purchase, they will allow on same purchase, atleast mine does :)

11/17/2020: All Restaurant/Fast food deals:

https://slickdeals.net/f/14460488-top-restaurant-fast-food-deals-pizzahut-domino-s-papa-john-s-coupons-thanksgiving-dinners-roundup

Someone took the effort to put all the coupons ann deals available on a lot of fast food places.

EXPIRED: 11/17/2020: 5 free face masks from American Express:

https://slickdeals.net/f/14557976-5-free-masks-from-american-express

Do not create a new account. Just use guest checout, and provide any name for your company, and your home shipping address. You don't need to be an amex card holder. Anyone can get a set of 5 masks for free.

EXPIRED: 11/14/2020: Capital one bank 360 checking account $400 offer => Expires Jan 26, 2021

Look in bank account bonus section for details of the offer: best bank bonus

EXPIRED: 11/11/2020: Subway Offer - BTGO (expiry unknown):

https://www.subway.com/en-us

 buy 2 get 1 free. You see a banner as pop up, there's no promo code. You add 3 footlong, and it should deduct the price of 1 at checkout. If it doesn't show, that means that store is not participating in the offer, so try another store. A decent deal, although not as good as BOGO offer

EXPIRED: 11/11/2020: Philips Toothbrush for $11 at Kohls:

https://slickdeals.net/f/14536622-kohls-cardholders-philips-sonicare-series-2-plaque-control-rechargeable-toothbrush-11-after-rebate-fres-store-pickup

Philips sonicare rechargeable toothbrush almost always goes on sale for $10 or so at Kohls around BF. This is a good deal as the cheapest replacement head for this sells for $5 or more. So, better to buy a new toothbrush every year and keep your teeth clean.

11/02/2020: Amazon Panel giving $10/month for surveys: (still LIVE as of 05/01/2021)

https://www.doctorofcredit.com/amazon-shopper-panel-earn-10-per-month-for-uploading-receipts-completing-surveys/

Go to panel.amazon.com in your browser, or download the app "amazon shopper panel" directly on phone. You will be on waitlist initially. People are reporting they get in within a week or so. If you do get in, you have to upload 10 receipts every month to get $10 for that month. Even if the offer ends, it's good to cash in while you can.

UPDATE 05/01/2021: I've already gotten $10/month for 6 straight months now, so the deal is still ongoing.  This is the easiest $10 that you can make every month.

EXPIRED: 11/02/2020: Dollar General offer for Hot Wheel Toy: BOGO

BOGO for Hot wheels car (around 50 cents each), Valid 5th Nov to 7th Nov.

https://slickdeals.net/f/14495273-bogo-hot-wheels-and-matchbox-cars-at-dollar-general-11-5-11-7

If you have kids (especially boys), you can't get a better deal, as the lowest Hot wheels cars you can buy at any store in USA is for $0.75 (that too on sale). DG has this deal may be once or twice a year, so stock up for a year. Not sure if $5 off $25 coupon also applies. That will make it even sweeter.

EXPIRED: 11/01/2020: BestBuy Tripod offer for $10:

camera tripod for $10:

https://slickdeals.net/f/14483195-best-buy-sunpak-platinumplus-5858d-58-tripod-black-9-99-store-pick-up-9-99

Whenever there's a tripod on sale for $10, it will go on "deals" section here. Why? Because a tripod lasts for a year, no matter how expensive you buy. So, for $10, use it and throw it after it breaks to buy a new one !!

EXPIRED: 10/30/2020: HSBC offer: $180 credit for HSBC premier checking account or HSBC credit card holders.

https://www.doctorofcredit.com/targeted-hsbc-earn-up-to-180-for-existing-checking-customers/

For those who applied for HSBC premier checking earlier for $720 in bonus, can get an additional $30/month for 6 months by meeting requirements above. Some people got email, while some had banner on their online account. There's nothing to sign up or anything for confirmation. It's automatic. As long as you meet the requirements, you get the monthly bonus. I believe it's for everyone who has premier checking account, since the FAQ says that anyone meeting requirements will get bonus. I've attached a screenshot from my account. The banner doesn't appear all the time and is random.

 This is the link with offer details: https://www.us.hsbc.com/checking-accounts/campaigns/premier180/

This is a screenshot of the link, incase the link stops working: hsbc_mc_offer_detail.png

EXPIRED: 10/21/2020: Skyone bank checking/savings $700 offer

https://www.doctorofcredit.com/skyone-200-checking-700-savings-bonus/

This is one of the best offers out there to get $700 + $25 Amazon gift card. This was the best bonus offer after a long dry spell of 6 months. Unfortunately the offer expired in just a couple of days.

EXPIRED: 10/21/2020: Taco Bell Offer: Free Nacho

Free Nacho cheese doritos locos taco at taco bell on 10/28/2020 (wed):

https://slickdeals.net/f/14453675-taco-bell-steal-a-base-free-doritos-taco-locos-on-10-28

EXPIRED: 10/16/2020: chipotle "BOGO" offer:

You  buy one at full price, and get one for free, so basically 2 for the price of one on 10/31/2020 (sat):

https://chipotle.com/boorito

This promotion from chipotle of "buy 1 get 1 free" comes every couple of months in some way or other. This time it's as halloween special, and you will need to order digitally (i.e order thru chipotle.com or thru their app). You have to text them some "marketing code" from their social media site to a number noted on the link above. This has to be done between 29th and 31st of October, and then they send you a code for redemption for any order placed on 31st Oct only. I still need to find out what the "marketing code" is.

EXPIRED: 09/06/2020: Microcenter Offer for Free USB Flash drive and SD card:

You need to provide an email address, and need to show the barcode that you receive in email. Valid until Sept 15, 2020

https://slickdeals.net/f/14281367-microcenter-in-store-coupon-32gb-micro-center-usb-3-0-flash-drive-microsd-card-free

EXPIRED: 06/01/2020: HSBC Offer for $720 signon bonus:

HSBC checking account offer for $700 with direct deposit totaling $5K/per month for 6 consecutive months. Open the one with the $700 offer (3% cash back) as $475 offer (Exclusive Welcome Deposit offer) gives you much less with almost same requirements. $700 offer gives you 3% on your direct deposit amount for 6 months. You can move the cash from checking to any other savings account which gives you higher interest rate, as the bonus doesn't require you to keep that money in HSBC account.

https://www.us.hsbc.com/checking-accounts/campaigns/premier-checking

There's also a slickdeals offer for getting $125 thru paypal. Might as well as take advantage of this, while you are opening the checking account, so that you can move move any money in checking account to this savings a/c to get 1% interest. This $125 is non taxable as it's not interest, and not offered by hsbc. So, total bonus would be $825 minus tax, not too bad in this non existent interest rate environment.

https://slickdeals.net/f/13983881-hsbc-direct-savings-account-earn-1-30-apy-extra-125-sd-bonus-member-fdic

Both offers end by Jun 30, 2020.

EXPIRED: 05/05/2020: SubwayOffer: BOGO

buy 1 get 1 free. So, 2 foot long veggie subway with veggie patties for $7 (or veggie delite without a veggie patty for $6). Expiry not mentioned (still valid as of 05/29/2020). You can also get 2 free cookie by submitting a review on link provided on your recipt (even though it's for next purchase, they will allow on same purchase, atleast mine does :)

https://slickdeals.net/f/14029208-subway-buy-one-get-one-free-footlong-app-orders-or-online

EXPIRED: 04/28/2020: Free Nacho cheese doritos locos taco at taco bell on 04/28/2020:

same as earlier deals posted below.

EXPIRED: 04/21//2020: Free Nacho cheese doritos locos taco at taco bell on 04/21/2020:

https://slickdeals.net/f/13992104-taco-bell-restaurant-doritos-locos-taco-free-drive-thru-orders-only-valid-4-21-20

Original nacho flavor, as well as flaming hot flavor, both valid for this promo. You can always substitute with beans to make it vegetarian. These normally cost $2. For party of 4, savings of $8 at a minimum, depending on how many times you can circle around the drive thru.

EXPIRED: 04/17/2020: Wells Fargo Bank Offer for $400:

$400 bonus with direct deposit

https://bonusoffer.wf.com/bonusoffer

pretty simple requirements. Make Direct deposit (thru your emplyer) of $4K or more in total in 3 months. You don't need to keep all of that money in wells fargo account. You can take out anything over $1500 ($1500 is needed to avoid the fees. But if you have direct deposit, that you don't even need that $1500 in there as there's no monthly fees for accounts having direct deposit).

EXPIRED: 04/08/2020: CIT Bank Offer for $300:

CIT Savings account with $150 or $300 bonus + 1.75% APY (nationwide): updated 04/23/2020 1.55% APY. updated 05/14/2020: 1.45% updated 05/30/2020: 1.25%. The way rate is going down, it may be below 1% in next few days.

https://cit.com/cit-bank/savings-builder-account-bonus-spring

None of the websites show bonus anymore. Offer still valid though. When opening account, make sure the documents state this $150/$300 bonus, and save that document in your personal computer just in case.

The bonus implies 0.6% extra APY assuming you keep $50K for a year. So, even if rates go down to 0.5%, you will still get at least 1% APY for a year, not too bad for 2020. Looks like in order to get 1.75% for all of your deposit, you need to do a monthly deposit of $100, else you get only 1.15% for your balance under $25K, and 1.75% for balance over $25K. Also their rates look consistent based on rate history, however that's changed in 2020 (i.e didn't use to be a bait and switch company, which reduces the rates immediately after getting new customers, but 2020 they are going all in). Keep $50K for about 4 months to be guaranteed a bonus.

https://www.depositaccounts.com/banks/cit-bank.html#rates

EXPIRED: 03/30/2020:Taco Bell Offer for free Nacho:

Free Nacho cheese doritos locos taco at taco bell on 03/31/2020:

https://slickdeals.net/f/13944521-taco-bell-free-nacho-cheese-doritos-locos-tacos-on-tuesday-3-31-20-drive-thru-only

Free for drive thru. Normally costs $2. My kids love it. For party of 4, savings of $8 at a minimum, depending on how many times you can circle around the drive thru.

EXPIRED: 12/25/2019: MSI Laptop offer for $549:

17.3" MSI Laptop for $549 or less:

https://slickdeals.net/f/13620961-msi-gf75-17-3-gaming-laptop-1080p-i5-9300h-8gb-ddr4-256gb-nvme-gtx1650-4gb-549-after-100-rebate-free-s-h

You get $100 rebate card, and can use $25 off $250 deal from american express (if you have it). With tax laptop will be ~$550, which is the lowest price for this MSI 17.3 inch laptop. In fact, it's the best laptop deal for 17 inch laptop.

EXPIRED: 11/23/2019: 70 inch BestBuy TV offer $550:

70" Samsung TV for $550:

https://slickdeals.net/f/13610116-my-best-buy-member-access-samsung-70-class-led-6-series-2160p-smart-4k-uhd-tv-with-hdr-un70nu6070fxza-best-buy-550

Best price for Samsung TV for > 65". Samsung 65" TV go for $500, 75" go for $700, so this is good bang for buck. Would like to get 75" samsung for this price, may be 2020 black friday, if you can wait a year.